Anger as East Midlands Ambulance Service 'take two hours to reach stricken pensioner'

The family of a man who tripped and fell in a Derby street on Saturday morning say they are angry at how long East Midlands Ambulance Service took to reach him.

Police were in Kedleston Road after Kevin Sutton fell and was unable to get up.

A passer-by initially reported that a man was in the street covered in a black bag. It later emerged this was Mr Sutton, 65, wrapped in blanket in a bid to keep him warm.

Mr Sutton's uncle, Derek Buckley, 75, said his relative had fallen and hit his back on the pavement at around 9am but that the ambulance didn't arrive for almost two hours.

He said: "I'm not happy at how long he's had to wait here. I understand the ambulance service are very busy but two hours is far too long. Someone from the interior shop over the road have gave him a pillow to put under his head but he’s clearly uncomfortable."

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Mr Buckley said that Mr Sutton was taken to hospital but was later discharged and is now at home.

He added: "I am extremely grateful for the person who covered him with a blanket and if they could get in touch with us so that we can return it, that would be great.

"We would like to thank the police and the paramedics for their excellent service."

He has asked the owner of the red, white and blue blanket to contact the Derby Telegraph's newsdesk on 01332 411 999.

A statement from EMAS said the service they provided was "short of the high standard patients should expect".

"We are sorry about that and the discomfort experienced," it read.

"We receive a new 999 emergency call on average every 34 seconds. Every call is assessed based on the information we are given by the caller, and while we aim to get to all patients as quickly as possible, those experiencing a life-threatening emergency such as cardiac arrest or breathing difficulties have to be seen first.

"We want to provide all of our patients with a quality timely response; however, during high demand patients may experience delays and for this we are sorry."

You can follow how we covered the incident below.

12:14Robbie Gordon

That's all for now

That’s all on this incident for now.

The Derby Telegraph has contacted East Midlands Ambulance Service for a response.

Thank you for reading.

11:53Robbie Gordon

Shop owner called ambulance two hours before paramedics arrived

A shop owner says she called the ambulance at 9.15am - almost two hours before paramedics arrived.

Jill Mason, owner of Kedleston Interiors, said: “When I opened the shop this morning I saw the man lying on the floor.

“I went over to see if he was ok but he couldn’t move so I called the ambulance service at 9.15am.

“I said it was an emergency and they asked lots of questions such as ‘is he breathing’ to determine how serious the situation was.”

“A woman parked her car in the road to keep him safe from traffic before the police arrived and I put a pillow under his head.

The 58-year-old added: “I can’t believe how long it took them to arrive but I suppose they have to prioritise emergencies.”

Kedleston Interiors, in Kedleston Road, Derby

11:33

Police have now left the scene

Kedleston Road is now clear after the earlier incident.

11:28

'EMAS are so underfunded at the moment'

Mr Buckley continued: “EMAS are so underfunded at the moment. They can’t deal with every incident because they simply haven’t got the resources anymore.

“This could have been a lot more serious and it’s worrying to think what could have happened if paramedics were delayed by up to two hours.”

11:21

Anger over how long it has taken for ambulance to arrive

Kevin Sutton, 65, tripped and fell over at around 9am today, his uncle has said.

Our reporter arrived just before the ambulance did at 11am.

Mr Sutton’s uncle, Derek Buckley, said: “He fell off the kerb and hit his back hard on the pavement. He says he can’t move and he has been lying here for about two hours waiting for the ambulance service to arrive.

“I’m not happy at how long he’s had to wait here. I understand the ambulance service are very busy but two hours is far too long. Someone from the interior shop over the road have gave him a pillow to put under his head but he’s clearly uncomfortable.”

11:13

Person in the street is an elderly man who is unable to get up

Our reporter says the person in the street is an elderly man.

He says one police car and two officers are there. He has apparently been there for around two hours and is unable to get up.